Dec 11, 2015

Sprinkles and Jimmies

If you are from the Northeast you likely call those chocolate little
things that are sprinkled
on ice cream as Jimmies. Most of the rest of the US calls them
sprinkles.

Jimmies were invented by the Just Born company in
1930 and named after an
employee, Jimmy Bartholomew, who
worked the chocolate pellet
machine. Born
marketed the freshness of his line
of daily-made candy with a sign
that declared, “Just Born.”

Samuel Born (no relation to Jason Bourne) was a
Russian immigrant who invented the machine that
inserted sticks in lollipops, the machine that
coats chocolate on ice cream and the extruder that
makes Easter 'peeps'. Before his machine,
each peep was made by hand squeezing
marshmallow in with a pastry tube. Other
notable goodies from the company include
including MIKE AND IKE® chewy fruit flavored
candies, spicy, cinnamon-flavored HOT TAMALES®,
and TEENEE BEANEE® gourmet jelly beans. The
"Just Born" company no longer manufactures jimmies.